I have the back door open and a bee has entered my kitchen and is buzzing around. Is the best course of action to leave the door open and hope it goes out, or is there a greater chance of more coming in?
鈥� It depends on the bee. Honeybees and bumblebees often end up indoors more by accident than intentionally. They seldom find the open window or door to leave again and will tend to go towards the light. This often results in them banging against the window for ages. It is simple enough to pick them up by the scruff of the neck and put them outside. If you don鈥檛 fancy that, an inverted cup with a stiff piece of card will suffice.
Wasps are a different matter. They will buzz around looking for something to eat. Sometimes they too are attracted to light and will go to a window, but they will often find their own way out. Again, if in doubt remove them yourself 鈥� but don鈥檛 get stung. Lights on inside a room will confuse both insects, and they will buzz around them.
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As a beekeeper, I find bees coming indoors when I鈥檓 extracting honey. They will even stay when it gets dark, but wasps leave by the way they came in when light levels drop. A single bee entering is usually not troublesome. However, there is a slim chance that a swarm is roosting and a scout has come in to check out the accommodation.
Gerald Legg, Hurstpierpoint, West Sussex, UK
鈥� I have found that pointing to the door and saying 鈥渙ut鈥� firmly will lead to the bee leaving almost immediately. It doesn鈥檛 work with wasps or flies.
Rod Newbery, Cambridge, UK
鈥� This question reminds me of the (possibly apocryphal) report about a caller to a US phone-in radio programme who said they had a skunk in the basement and asked what was the easiest way to get rid of it. Within minutes another caller suggested leaving the exterior door open and laying a trail of crumbs from the centre of the basement to the door. Half an hour later the original caller phoned back and said there were now two skunks in the basement.
John Darlington, Annaduff Glebe, Ireland